Multiple Series?

[silentguy]

Hi!
I requested a feature to have the ability to add multiple series, and I was told to use a custom series-like column.
I did not figure out a good way to do this so I though I'd just ask if there is a good way to manage a book that's in more then one series.

I added a second, series-like column, but I found no way to get the two columns in sync, so both had their separate numberings and showed up separately in the tag browser. Am I missing something?

[Manichean]

Originally Posted by silentguy

I added a second, series-like column, but I found no way to get the two columns in sync, so both had their separate numberings and showed up separately in the tag browser. Am I missing something?

Isn't having a second, unrelated series index and series name kind of the point of having an additional series entry for your metadata? In other words, I don't understand what the problem is.

[silentguy]

Okay, that was slightly ambiguous. The specific entries for the one book should of cause be unrelated, but the the underlying overall series data should be the same. e.g I tag a book as SeriesA [5] and SeriesB [1]. Then "SeriesA [5]" and "SeriesB [1]" should both be in use and the next book I tag as SeriesA should get the 6 and SeriesB should get the 2.

But using two columns SeriesA [5] is only in use in series and SeriesB [1] in #series2.
They also creates seperate entries in the tag browser, makes searched more compicated because you always have to search multiple fields, etc.

[Manichean]

Well, there's no way around the searching multiple fields, since youre adding a new field. If I understand you correctly, you want both the series field and the series2- field you added to appear as one, central series field? The only way to do that would be to build a composite column, but you'd still have to keep the two series fields visible, since you can't edit values from a composite column. It would, however, allow you to search the series fields from one single field, though I'm not too sure how helpful it would actually be. In your example, assuming you'd use the template "{series} {series_index};{#series2} {#series2_index}", you'd get the composite field "SeriesA 5; SeriesB 1" for the first book, the second book would then have "SeriesA 6; Series B 2" and so on. What I'm trying to say is that creating such a composite column loses the series flavour of the information- it's all just a text field then, and you'll have to search it like one.

[silentguy]

Hm, I've tried that, but you are right, that is not really useful. What I was hoping for was autocompletion, combined display in the tag browser and easy searching.
I found out that the last one can be achieved via the grouped_search_terms tweak, but it seems the other two are not possible.

[Manichean]

As for the tag browser: Click on manage user categories and add a new one for both series fields. Add all the entries from both series fields to the category. The downside is: As far as i can see, you'll have to add newly created series to the category manually each time you enter a new one.

[Worldwalker]

I collect early 20th century boys' series (Tom Swift, etc.) and this can be a really annoying issue. Of course, the annoyance starts with the book packagers, who decided they'd take books 1, 2, and 3 of an existing series and make them books 5, 6, and 7 of another series, or re-issue an existing series with some of the books rearranged, apparently just to make collectors who hadn't even been born yet tear our hair out in bloody chunks.

Mostly, I've just given up. But to the extent it can be fixed, I think it's going to have to be done manually, as people suggested above. (and in my case, a time machine and a list of people to yell at might help)

[ThR]

Maybe my english is not as good as I thought. Sorry if I ask a question, which is answered above (or in another thread, I've overseen or misinterpreted).
I have the same problem. Books, that depend to a big series, and some of them to "sub-cycles":

book 1 - main-series 1
book 2 - main-series 2 & sub-series A 1
book 3 - main-series 3 & sub-series A 2
book 4 - main-series 4 & sub-series B 1
book 5 - main-series 5
book 6 - main-series 6 & sub-series A 3
book 7 - main-series 7 & sub-series B 2
book 8 - main-series 8 & sub-series C 1
book 9 - main-series 9 & sub-series B 3
book 10 - main-series 10
book 11 - main-series 11 & sub-series C 3

Is it possible to build this structure with "on-board-methods" within calibre (and maybe as "goodie" to replicate the main-series- and sub-series-inormation in seperate collections (Sony PRS-XXX))?

OK - found the solution. Sorry for asking. It was too easy. Implementing a new field (for storing series-like information - build in within calibre) did the trick. Now I only have to test the thing with the collection...

[Pinecone]

Yes you can. Sort of. The series like columns do not seem to auto increment the series number like that built in series clumn. Maybe that change will do what you want.

You pretty much have to do it manually now.

You get the books into the right order. Then you can Bulk Edit Metadata to put them in the Main series in order. Or you add them to the main series one at a time Editing the metadata. Then sort by the series column.

This will be the main series in order.

Then select Sub Series A books and Bulk Edit the metadata and under Custom Field pick the Sub Series A and then tell it to Auto Number, and set the Start number to 1.

When you add books later, just select the new Sub Series A books, and NOT check the Start Number box, and it will pick up from the last number used in that series.

[Nyssa]

I've read (and re-read) this thread, but I'm not quite understanding what I need, and I think its becuase I want to do something a little different.

I now have the complete Honor Harrington/Honorverse series, including 4 of the 5 anthologies. My issue is that the stories in the anthologies are spread out over the series, so I can not put them in a specific order.
For instance: One of the stories in More Than Honor goes before book 1, but another goes after book 7.

How (if at all possible) can I at least show a place holder for a specific story from a specific anthology?

Would creating an "empty book" help? If so, how would you suggest using it, so that the stories show up in the correct order?

Lastly, what do I have to add/change in tweaks, so that all of the Honorverse books & stories show up in the correct order?

Here is what I have now:

sort_columns_at_startup = (('authors', 0), ('series', 0), ('title', 0))

And attached is a pic of how my Honorverse books are arranged in Calibre. The highlighted books are the Anthologies.

T.I.A.

[theducks]

Originally Posted by Nyssa

I've read (and re-read) this thread, but I'm not quite understanding what I need, and I think its becuase I want to do something a little different.

I now have the complete Honor Harrington/Honorverse series, including 4 of the 5 anthologies. My issue is that the stories in the anthologies are spread out over the series, so I can not put them in a specific order.
For instance: One of the stories in More Than Honor goes before book 1, but another goes after book 7.

How (if at all possible) can I at least show a place holder for a specific story from a specific anthology?

Would creating an "empty book" help? If so, how would you suggest using it, so that the stories show up in the correct order?

Lastly, what do I have to add/change in tweaks, so that all of the Honorverse books & stories show up in the correct order?

Here is what I have now:

sort_columns_at_startup = (('authors', 0), ('series', 0), ('title', 0))

And attached is a pic of how my Honorverse books are arranged in Calibre. The highlighted books are the Anthologies.

T.I.A.

You can have fractional series indexes. (you need to type the value, not use the arrows). 0.5 is a valid index. 0.0 is valid (I use this frequently for series indexes, users gides...)

Empty books are GREAT place holders. When the book shows up, open the entry and drop the format into the formats box

[kiwidude]

Originally Posted by Nyssa

I now have the complete Honor Harrington/Honorverse series, including 4 of the 5 anthologies. My issue is that the stories in the anthologies are spread out over the series, so I can not put them in a specific order.
For instance: One of the stories in More Than Honor goes before book 1, but another goes after book 7.

How (if at all possible) can I at least show a place holder for a specific story from a specific anthology?

Would creating an "empty book" help? If so, how would you suggest using it, so that the stories show up in the correct order?

Anothologies can be a pain . Yes you could use an empty book entry, so you could for instance give the original More Than Honor book an index of 0.1 (something below 1) and create an empty book representing the other story with index 7.1. That should put them in the right place when sorted properly.

Lastly, what do I have to add/change in tweaks, so that all of the Honorverse books & stories show up in the correct order?

Here is what I have now:

sort_columns_at_startup = (('authors', 0), ('series', 0), ('title', 0))

And attached is a pic of how my Honorverse books are arranged in Calibre. The highlighted books are the Anthologies.

There are a couple of things here. The first is that some of your books in the series have multiple authors. As your search criteria is to display by series and then by author according to your tweak, it unfortunately means it gets displayed out of sequence. Personally what I do in that situation is modify the author value so it matches all the other books in the same series. It is more important to me to see books in a series in order than to care about who the coauthor was, but you may feel differently.

The second thing is that if you want to sort by the "Series Info" column rather than "Series" to get Honorverse showing up in order then you need to change your tweak. You haven't said what the internal name of your "Series Info" column is, perhaps it is something like "series_info" or "seriesinfo". Then your tweak would become something like:

sort_columns_at_startup = (('authors', 0), ('#series_info', 0), ('title', 0))

If you don't always populate series info but do have series populated you might prefer instead to sort by one and then the other:

sort_columns_at_startup = (('authors', 0), ('#series_info', 0), ('series',0), ('title', 0))

[Nyssa]

Thank you, both!!

My "Series Info" lookup is 'seriesinfo'; do I need to add the number sign or just type "seriesinfo" ?

I've gone ahead and changed the "author" field as suggested, and am now going to try the empty book place holders.

Thank you again.

[Nyssa]

Using the empty books as place holders is wonderful and I am now using the following code as suggested :

sort_columns_at_startup = (('authors', 0), ('#seriesinfo', 0), ('series', 0), ('title', 0))

Everything seems to be working, except: How do I get the titles to list in alphabetical order when both the "seriesinfo" and "series" fields are empty?

[DoctorOhh]

Originally Posted by Nyssa

sort_columns_at_startup = (('authors', 0), ('#seriesinfo', 0), ('series', 0), ('title', 0))

Everything seems to be working, except: How do I get the titles to list in alphabetical order when both the "seriesinfo" and "series" fields are empty?

In theory your startup sort should ensure the titles list alphabetically when not in a the two series fields. You might want to make sure your Set the maximum number of sort levels tweak is high enough. The default of 5 should be fine but if you dropped the number to 3 it could screw up your order. You might also want to investigate the Control sorting of titles and series in the library display tweak.

Good Luck.